Because tomorrow is St. Crispan’s Day, I’m doing our Sunday morning opera on Saturday. Monday is the 26th. We all know what happened at 2:30PM, October 26, 1881 in Tombstone. And, yes, there is an opera for that. It is also one of those operas I want to stage. Let’s face it, how often can you get a truly juicy baritone role, where, when done properly, the barihunk must channel Wyatt Earp. It is even better when the greatest of them all did the role with an excellent DVD of his performance available.

La fanciulla del West, which debuted at the Met, in 1910 with Enrico Caruso, was based on the American stage play, Girl of the Golden West by David Belasco. It was set in the days of the California Gold Rush, c 1849, but that doesn’t matter. What is important was the fact that it was a western. The genre of the western was important, even during the days of the Wild West. With the advent of the motion picture, westerns were plentiful, even before the turn of the century. Interestingly, before Puccini’s opera, there were only twenty-five westerns filmed, period. It came into a world just waiting for the first big star, who would be William S.Hart, followed by matinee idol Tom Mix. Both men admired Wyatt Earp and were his good friends. Both were pallbearers at his funeral. Mix was in tears. Not long before he died, a young writer went to interview Wyatt. He and Tom Mix were busy writing a list of the things he was going to as the Good Lord when he got to heaven, because he felt the Good Lord owed him an explanation for some of the things which happened in his life. Earp was a devout Christian who was more interested in talking to the woman about her relationship with Christ, than his own life.

The beauty of the Puccini opera is that the western, as a genre has already been established, with all the cliches we have, even today.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

SJ Reidhead (aka The Pink Flamingo) is a writer based in New Mexico. The author of two published novels, both westerns: Dust Devil and The Second Mrs. Earp and two published works of non-fictions: TRAVESTY: Frank Waters Earp Agenda Exposed and A Church for Helldorado, Endicott Peabody's 1882 Tombstone Diary. One of the leading authorities on the life of Wyatt Earp and Tombstone during the Earp years, she is writing a series of murder mysteries set in modern day Tombstone. The author is also working on a book about fashion in the Wild West. When complete, there will be over 2100 unpublished antique photographs dating from 1855-1910.

The author's work has appeared in Wild West, True West, Blogcritics, and The Tombstone Times. Recently the author has had to deal with a father who succumbed to Alzheimer's Disease. This is leading to a book dealing with the frustrations of dealing with the frustrations of the disease, finance, legal, health-care, and things no one bothers telling families about it. A portion of the book will contain entries from a blog she kept, detailing the struggle with her father's AD. She is also working on a murder mystery series set in modern day Tombstone and Cochise County. Several books of essays on Christian living are currently in edits. A book of essays and revisions of articles about Wyatt Earp has been completed and will include her latest work detailing her theory about the murder of his second wife, Mattie.

SJ Reidhead has been involved in Republican politics since she was 'a little kid'. During the Reagan years she was a lobbyist working with various non-profit organizations who were attempting to salvage NASA and the American space program after the disastrous Carter years. In spite of ups and downs, and numerous disappointments, politically, it is obvious the only political hope for this country is via the Republican Party. Along with politics she is an opera fanatic, has been known to stalk baritones to the point of being a baritone junkie, and loves baseball.

The Pink Flamingo went on line on October 4, 2005.

THE PINK FLAMINGO STORY

It started out as a joke. During the seven years I worked with the girls of my parish, leading a youth group, one of the things that I stressed were manners. Part of having manners, the way I see it, is to know how to set a proper table, host a party, cater it, and clean up afterward. I was fortunate enough to have a group of very talented girls in my youth group. They learned how to plan for, and execute large church functions, very properly. During one such function I noticed there were several incredibly tacky pink flamingos sitting on the table. Knowing the girls were up to something, I said nothing. A few months later they did the same thing at a function I was hosting at my home. I said nothing. They had a birthday party for me. More pink flamingos appeared - and a joke was born.

Thanks to the girls, all of whom are now grown, I have a collection of pink flamingos. It has become an ongoing joke. When I began working on my political blog, I realized the only possibly title was The Pink Flamingo!